Translation Workshop

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WHAT IS A TRANSLATION WORKSHOP?
In our latest Prayer Request update, you will see see a mention of a Translation Workshop coming up in April. Here, where I have a little more room to write, I will try to describe in a little more detail what that’s all about, and explain that prayer request in a little more detail.

Translating the Word of God is not only an enormous undertaking, it is a humbling and sobering task! There is always more to learn about how to determine the meaning and how to communicate it well. Experienced translators and consultants can teach others a great deal, and good dialogue between those of us who are involved in the same ministry is both interesting and helpful. Often, there are new reference works and software for us to learn about together. To communicate so much to dozens of translators, it is more efficient to gather everyone together for a workshop… traveling to each tribal allocation to cover the same material one-on-one with each translator would take too long and run up huge travel bills.

This translation workshop in particular is a little different. It is called a “Team Translation Workshop.” We will not only be gathering all our translators in the Philippines together with some of our mission’s translation consultants, but we will also have each translator’s teammates… their church planting co-workers, join us. The purpose of this is so that everyone can learn together to facilitate the translation. The church planters are familiar with the Bible and they know the tribal language, and they are the ones who will be using the translation, so it is important that they learn how to give good input to the translator. It is also helpful for them to understand the translation process and the principles involved so they will have less questions concerning the translator’s work. Co-workers can also have a part in the translation process itself, and we will explore that together at the workshop.

In the afternoon sessions, we will be dividing up and each tribal team will work on some actual translation together. For this, each team will need their native-language translation helpers there.

OUR DILEMMA…
That explains why I need to communicate with my Palawano translation helpers. I need to let them know about the workshop, and find out which of them (how many guys and which ones, specifically) can come to the workshop. They in turn need to know in time to make provision for their families during the time they will be gone, etc. But all this is difficult since they are all on Palawan in the village and I have no way to contact them! My main helper Giyang comes out to town from time to time to buy supplies since he is also our village clinic medical worker. I have left word with people in town which they will pass to him if they see him.

Is is critical that we are able to find out who can come to the workshop very soon so we can book their tickets (we cannot buy tickets without knowing the passengers’ names), and flights are filling up due to the Philippine schools Easter break.

PLEASE PRAY…
So if you think of it, please pray that Giyang will come out to town and get my letter. Pray, too, that two or three of the translation helpers I need will be willing and available to come to the workshop.

BUT MOST OF ALL…
Pray most of all that we will learn to translate better… and faster, and thus to make good progress to quickly get the Word of God into the hands of the Palawano church.

Unexpected Travel Again

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March 1, 2006
We Are In the USA…
In early February, we were saddened to learn that Donna’s mom had been diagnosed with terminal cancer. Her time was potentially quite short, and she needed help, so Donna flew to be with her in the Mid West.
Bill was planning to remain on Palawan and continue working on our house in the tribe until mid-March. But the mission’s entire flight program on Palawan is in the middle of a move and this meant that he could not fly in to our village for a rather long time. So he has flown here, as well. We are caring for Donna’s mom during this time and Bill is working on a number of ministry projects on the computer and via email: these include Palawano language research and discourse analysis, preparations and communication with others who will be designing a literacy program for the Palawanos, and several things related to resuming the translation of the Palawano New Testament.
Right now we plan for Bill to return to Manila in early April for a Bible Translation Workshop and some other events coming up in our work there. Donna will catch up with him later, returning to the Philippines when she is able.

Repairing Our House

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Feb 8, 2006
NO MORE RAIN INDOORS!
After several years of neglect while we were in the USA, our “Little House in the Jungle” needed repair! Mostly the roof was leaking, so we had rain indoors. (Note: this is a real problem when you get over 200″ of rain a year!)
Not only this, but the previous roof was metal, which meant that the rain was so noisy during tropical downpours, that I could not carry on a conversation with my translation helpers. (Note: this is a problem when Bible translation is what you’re supposed to be doing, and with that much annual rainfall, we’re not talking about a sporadic event.)
So we are thankful for a team from one of our supporting churches in California. They came over and gave two weeks of their time to reroof our house with a white plastic roof (cooler and quieter.) Wow… what a difference!
“Reaching Palawanos” is a team effort and we are so grateful for those who help in so many ways.
Praise the Lord!

Jan 1, 2006 (Consultant Ministry)

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Helping to Train Helpers…
 
During this interim while Donna is in the USA and we are waiting for our shipment to arrive here on Palawan, Bill has been busy with consultant ministry. Just like old times… kinda.
 
He has already had the chance to work with 7 different missionaries, evaluating their progress in learning language and culture. At the same time–and more importantly–he has been training two others to do this type of consultant ministry. This is important, since we have told the field that we want to focus on translation this term. Bill had already said that he did not want to take back all his previous consultant responsibilities, but that he was willing to give some time initially to training others to take over.
 
One other consultant trip had to be cancelled when Bill got sick and the pilot was stranded in another town because of massive flooding from heavy rains.

Nov 1, 2005 (Back on Palawan!)

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 Life Hasn’t Slowed Down…

We have returned at last to our translation ministry on Palawan.
 
We arrived back the Philippines at last on Oct 31. This is a big holiday here, but it’s not “Halloween,” it is November 1st, “All Saints’ Day,” which is a big deal here.
 
It was great to be “home” in the Philippines again, looking forward to returning to our ministry here. We were in Manila for a couple of weeks… getting over jet lag, re-acclimating (or trying to!) to the heat and humidity and getting things started at immigration with new visas.
 
It was good while at the Guest House to see our some of our partners and coworkers and get caught up a bit.
 
We flew to Palawan on Nov 14, and then the very next day continued on into the village where we minister among the Palawanos. It was so good to see everyone! And wow, how the kids had grown and the big kids now had families… so many new babies and small children for us to get to know.
 
Donna’s language helpers are excited and ready to help her resume her journey toward complete fluency. This will help Donna take on even more of a role in the translation.
 
And Bill’s translation helpers are very excited to have him back, anxious to get to work, and really motivated to get more Scripture produced in Palawano.
 
While there we spent time with our partners, discussing team issues and being brought up-to-date. We also checked out our house… still standing, in pretty good shape overall, but needing some work. We made lots of notes and took measurements for materials. A work team from the US will be coming in early 2006 to reroof the house and help with other construction, so we need to be ready.
 
Then we flew back out to Puerto Princesa, as our house in the village is not livable at this time. While in Puerto, Bill has been helping the field with consultant training in the area of culture and language acquisition and doing evaluations of missionaries’ progress.
 
We were looking forward to Christmas with Bethy, who was due to arrive here in December, and our upcoming annual conference, a workshop on animism and an upcoming conference on regional linguistics.
 
Then, while in another tribal village doing consultant work, we got the sad yet expected news that Donna’s dad had passed away, so we had to make hurried plans to get Donna home for the funeral and all the family things.
 
She’s there now and one blessing is that she will now be able to attend Bethy’s college graduation! They fly back in December and Donna is wait-listed to be on Bethy’s same flight (otherwise she will fly the following day.
 
Bill is in Puerto doing other work and anxiously awaiting Donna’s return and Bethy’s arrival.

May 16, 2005 (Annual Bible Study)

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The Palawanos Study the Book of James
 
The Palawano church held their annual Bible study conference May 13-15. Believers and unbelievers from other communities attended and studied the translation of the book of James. God used our partners and Palawano Bible teachers Susing, Abil, Giyang, Arturo and Lito to teach and to touch lives through God’s Word.
 
At the final service, after observing the Lord’s Supper, our partners fired up their generator and showed “The Passion of the Christ.” Just as that movie affected many of us, it really impacted the Palawanos. Many believers were in tears as they saw graphically what their Lord went through for them… just exactly what they were “remembering until He comes.”
 
But one woman saw that and said, “I understand now Jesus died to save me from my sin. But I don’t know HOW to be saved!” Our partner’s wife gladly shared the gospel with her and rejoiced to welcome this new sister into the family of the children of God.